Dhoni Criticism

Mahendra Singh Dhoni once said, "I want players who, if I ask them to, will stand in front of a truck", and, true to his wish the young Indian team rallied behind him and has been consistently outdoing opponents in one of the greatest cricketing highs of Indian cricket. His leadership skills were being compared to that of Steve Waugh. He came out as a brilliant tactician on the field and inspired the young team to achieve greatness.
But, pressure seems to be telling on the Indian skipper. Even during the great showing by the 'men in blue', Dhoni was feeling the intense pressure of captainship building up. Over a period, he has slowly lost what he was respected for - aggression and fluency. And, amidst all this came the T 20 World Cup, which exposed the chinks in MSD's armour.
Information leaks, Sehwag's injury fiasco, media gag, poor form and pressure of captaincy added to Dhoni's woes. Leading commentators like Ravi Shastri, Harsha Bhogle and Barry Richards among others referred to his brilliant past while highlighting his not-so-glittering present form. His wicket-keeping skills have always been questioned and now the criticism is growing louder about his much vaunted batting. Dhoni realizes that if batting does not click then his place in the team could come under a cloud. Due to this reason, he is continuously shuffling the batting order to give himself more time to bat. His use of bowlers are also baffling cricket experts. "He is losing control of the team because of his individual form and decisions. Earlier, Zaheer was the de facto leader of the bowling unit. He would encourage the bowlers and help them out. In the last few matches, however, his involvement seems to have petered out. This should be a cause of concern for Dhoni," an expert told Hardnews.
His poor batting form and decision to bat first down is drawing ire from all quarters. His decision to play Suresh Raina late is hurting not only Raina but also the team. In the qualifying matches, Raina had to bat under immense pressure in the last few overs and started swashbuckling straightway. Raina needs time at the crease and can be aggressive and hold the innings at one end. But, continuous shuffling of his batting order is hurting this talented cricketer as it was evident in the match against West Indies.
Dhoni's decision to play cautiously in the middle overs is spoiling the team's prospects to defend the crown. "In India's match against Bangladesh, Dhoni came first down and slowed the aggressive start given by Rohit Sharma. This decision cost India some very valuable runs. One can afford this in matches against minnows, but against teams like South Africa or New Zealand, middle overs can be a decisive factor," said a cricket enthusiast. Dhoni must be fighting his own demons as he would be well aware of how closely his decisions are being watched.
India's loss against West Indies in the Super 8 can spell disaster for Dhoni and his team's prospects. His super slow innings in the middle overs, missed run-out chances, under-utilisation of Irfan Pathan and other part time bowlers are making headlines. Fans blame him for the debacle and started to doubt whether the Captain Cool is cool anymore.
India was in a similar situation in the last World Cup, but then Dhoni was confident, in-form and utilised all his resources wisely. This seems to have gone missing in 2009. If the team falters and fails to qualify, Dhoni will be the target of the ire of cricket fans and the media to an extent never before faced by Captain Cool.

"If India crashes out, Dhoni's fate is uncertain but rest assured that he would never be the same MSD we loved. The MSD who batted at all positions fearlessly only to instil fear amongst the opposition is what we want and this is what he should," rued a fan. Those who have been watching Dhoni closely would also see a change in his batting style. The flourish with which he stroked the ball has gone. Sometime back even a politician, Lalu Prasad Yadav, commented on his loss of form.

Dhoni's commitment to the game remains undisputed. He is at the crossroads of his cricketing career and a few mistakes can trigger the inevitable beginning of an end. But, the onus is on Dhoni to figure out how he can improve his skills as a batter and a leader before the destiny catches up with him.

I don't see the problem. Dhoni has had a terrible tournament and is a big part of why India were kicked out early. As long as the criticism is accurate and focussed on the cricket there is nothing wrong with it. Dhoni is a huge celebrity who get paid enormous sums of money and the flip side is that he has to take it on the chin when he screws up. He is still young and he will learn from this and recover.

The media is the reason he gets paid as much as he does. Players are all happy when they are being overly praised for the odd good performance so they should accept the over harsh criticism that comes their way too.

I wish there was a more moderate approach to reporting out there but unfortunately it isn't the case. As long as they don't go vandalising his house and harassing his family I'm okay with it.

Dunno about the keeping criticism. I haven't seen much of him since they last played Australia in tests, but he was fine in India I thought, and frankly superlative out here in the tests (different format I know).

Last edited by Burgey; 15-06-2009 at 01:00 AM.

WWCC - Loyaulte Mi Lie

"Hope is the fuel of progress and fear is the prison in which you put yourself" - Tony Benn

Dunno about the keeping criticism. I haven't seen much of him since they last played Australia in tests, but he was fine in India I thought, and frankly superlative out here in the tests (different format I know).

But he is a defensive captain... This tournament has been his worst by quite a long way in terms of captaincy and just like batsmen or bowlers or fielders making mistakes, he has made a few (more than a few, perhaps) as the captain. Hopefully he will learn from this and get better.

But I repeat this again. He is and seems he always will be a defensive captain. Inspite of all the talent India have got, I just dont see us being #1 for any real length of time with that attitude from the captain. But then again, given the number of changes to the way the game is being played these days, it might just be good for India to have a defensive minded guy as the captain.

I think Duffer hit the nail on the head. He is paid heaps, he is praised heaps when doing well, often undeservingly and the flip side is when he doesn't do well, he is gonna get such stuff his way. As long as it is only headlines and print instead of hurting his house etc.., he has just got to bear it. Even I wish we had more balanced media but this is the way it is and you gotta learn to take it.

We miss you, Fardin. :(. RIP.

Originally Posted by vic_orthdox

In the end, I think it's so utterly, incomprehensibly boring. There is so much context behind each innings of cricket that dissecting statistics into these small samples is just worthless. No-one has ever been faced with the same situation in which they come out to bat as someone else. Ever.

But he is a defensive captain... This tournament has been his worst by quite a long way in terms of captaincy and just like batsmen or bowlers or fielders making mistakes, he has made a few (more than a few, perhaps) as the captain. Hopefully he will learn from this and get better.

But I repeat this again. He is and seems he always will be a defensive captain. Inspite of all the talent India have got, I just dont see us being #1 for any real length of time with that attitude from the captain. But then again, given the number of changes to the way the game is being played these days, it might just be good for India to have a defensive minded guy as the captain.

Completely disagree with all of this. I don't think Dhoni is a defensive captain, i don't think the loss was the result of his captaincy and i don't think having a defensive captain can stop a side from being world number one.

Completely disagree with all of this. I don't think Dhoni is a defensive captain, i don't think the loss was the result of his captaincy and i don't think having a defensive captain can stop a side from being world number one.

Dhoni is a terribly defensive captain (watch for the next time a batsman hits a few 4s and I guarantee he'll send the fieldsmen to all parts) but he wont stop India from becoming no. 1 - retirements and a lack of quality will

Dhoni is a terribly defensive captain (watch for the next time a batsman hits a few 4s and I guarantee he'll send the fieldsmen to all parts) but he wont stop India from becoming no. 1 - retirements and a lack of quality will

100% agreement with this. The 8-1 field alone is proof of his defensive mindset, but don't get me wrong, defensive captaincy is sometimes better than aggressive ott captaincy. He got a couple of strategies wrong in this tournament and he has rightfully apologised to the fans. While he gets things done, people call it luck, and when it does not work, people call him ****.